


I Like You Too

by XxTheDarkLordxX



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Abundance of fluff, Bittersweet but happy, Boys In Love, But it's not really what you think, Character Death, Emotional Roller Coaster, Fluff, I know that sounds scary, It gets fixed, M/M, but it's a good cry, i cried, mostly - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-29
Updated: 2017-12-29
Packaged: 2019-02-23 08:45:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,568
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13186518
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/XxTheDarkLordxX/pseuds/XxTheDarkLordxX
Summary: Words don't come easy for Harry or Draco. But sometimes, what isn't said is heard louder than what is. They will keep listening for those unspoken words... until the very end. Together.





	I Like You Too

**Author's Note:**

> Please regard the tags. This is a MCD story but it isn't as it seems. I wish it was easier to explain. I did fix it, in a way. Just bear with me.
> 
> Thank you @restlessandordinary for looking this over for me! 
> 
> Warning- I do not own Harry Potter in any way, shape or form. All rights to the characters are trademarked by J.K. Rowling. The only thing is mine is the way I spin the story. It is for entertainment only and not part of the official story line.

               It started off tentatively and slowly. A simple smile here, a lingering glance there and even whispered greetings in passing. Harry wasn’t sure where Malfoy fell in his line of friends. They were passed acquaintances, but definitely not anything to write home about.

               As the year progressed, he couldn’t help but wish there was a way to  _show_ Malfoy that things were changing between them. Surely, he couldn’t be the only one to have felt it? It wasn’t just one smile that lifted at the corners, no, it was mutual. It just had to be.

               Time was running out. Something that should have ignited a sense of panic, but Harry marveled at such a normal concept. Time. With the war behind them, but still in their peripheral vision, time was something of a miracle. If he wanted to, he could take all the time in the world to do a simple act. He could spend years finishing out his N.E.W.T.s, or months responding to mail from the Minister. Time was something that would continue with or without him. It was something that was always going to be there, and Harry loved that.

               However, time with Malfoy was running out. Malfoy was studying to become a Magizoologist, something Harry never saw coming. The school year was quickly coming to a close and Harry knew he would have to act fast before Malfoy moved on to further study in his field.

               How do you voice what you don’t want to name?

* * *

 

               “I don’t see how going to the Room of Requirements is a surprise, Potter.” Draco had to grab hold of Potter’s arm to keep up. “I have a lot of studying to do before my last N.E.W.T. This better be worth it.”

               Harry didn’t let Malfoy’s ire get to him. “I think you will like it. Gryffindor honour.”

               “There’s no such thing as Gryffindor honour,” Draco mumbled as he shook his head at the contagious grin on Potter’s face. If a small smile escaped him in response, well then it was probably an anomaly.

               When Potter stopped and gestured for Draco to enter first, he rolled his eyes but proceeded anyway.

               Draco’s breath caught in his throat at the sight of baby magical creatures running and galloping around the room.

               “What’s this?” There were dozens of different species, his eyes couldn’t keep track of all of them. Dragons, thestrals, unicorns, kneazles and so much more.

               Harry couldn’t contain his pleased grin at the sight of wonder in Malfoy’s eyes. “I knew you were bummed about having to take another four years of further study before you could properly enter your internship. This was the only way I could bring the creatures to you.”

               When Malfoy didn’t say anything, Harry rushed to explain. “They aren’t real. Well, not exactly. It was a mixture of my own magic and the room itself. But they are corporeal enough to interact with.” He wasn’t properly aware of how they came to be himself. An exasperated lecture from Hermione on the properties of transfiguration combined with high levels of magic and the dimensional insights the Room of Requirement was still ringing in his head. Not that he really understood any of it.

               “I just...” Harry paused, unsure how to really explain himself. Now faced with the silent Malfoy, he wasn’t sure if this was a good idea or not. “I wanted to give you a glimpse of why you chose to be a Magizoologist in the first place. In case all of the studying got to you.”

               The sound of a teething dragon had taken Harry’s attention off of Malfoy. To be honest, he was using it as a method in distraction. It was hard to be crushed in the face of baby animals.  

               “Harry.”

               It wasn’t the use of his name that had Harry’s head snapping up. No, it was the breathless quality to the utterance. He had never heard his name said with such reverence, never heard Malfoy say anything in that tone before.

               Draco’s mind stopped working as it should. He wasn’t sure if it was a lack of oxygen or if Harry had quite literally stilled him into inaction. No one had ever done something like this for him. This wasn’t a gift for his birthday or even Christmas. This wasn’t a means of fixing something or even because of guilt. Harry was simply being himself. Harry had done this as if it was just a simple thought. As if normal people do it all the time. Perhaps they do. Draco had never been normal after all.

               The longer he stared into Harry’s eyes, the more he realized that he wasn’t sure what to say. How do you thank someone when they don’t even realize the magnitude of the situation? How was he to properly explain the feelings making his stomach feel as if he was flying without a broom? He wanted to say so much, but his mind was not reliable at the moment.

               Out of the corner of Draco’s eyes, he could see a baby Niffler trying to climb up a chair to reach a gold-plated cup. He wanted to observe what would happen when the little Niffler couldn’t pick it up, but his resolve couldn’t be that easily distracted.

               Harry opened his mouth to say  _something,_ but the determination on Draco’s face had his mouth shutting softly and his back to straighten minutely.

               “I like you, Harry.”

               Four words that should be simple, but they were anything but. It was ironic that Draco would be the one to voice his feelings. Harry had stressed for weeks and it turned out to be for nought. With the sounds of many creatures playing around them and the open door Draco provided, it was easy to say what he felt.

               “I like you too.”

               They didn’t need to say anything else. The emotions were plainly stated, and an understanding began to form. An understanding that the sentence meant far more than what was voiced.

               Harry realized as a Cornish Pixie shoved him into Draco, that surrounded by dozens of magical creatures and the warmth of Draco’s arms on him, there wasn’t anywhere he would rather be.

* * *

 

               “I don’t see why you are so worked up. It’s just Malfoy.”

               Harry rolled his eyes at Ron as he tried not to fidget. “He’s passed his first-year finals, Ron. I’m here to surprise him.”

               “Yeah,” Ron began sitting on a nearby bench and resting his feet a garbage bin. “But you are dating the git. Why are you nervous to see him?”

               That was a great question. Harry wasn’t really sure why he was so nervous. Perhaps because it had been a month since their last date. It was tricky trying to match up their schedules, so they usually only relied on floo conversations. Draco was busy with his schooling and Harry was always off somewhere exploring the country with Luna. After deciding he didn’t want to be an Auror, it had taken little persuasion from his friend to go on expeditions and find all the creatures she swore existed. He liked to consider this his time to figure out what he wanted to do with his life. And what better way to do that then on the hunt for the Crumpled-Horned Snorkack?

               “Also,” Ron continued, annoyance colouring his tone. “Why am I here? My one day off from Auror training and it’s spent being the third wheel.”

               Harry knew that Ron had been bored enough that he had been playing exploding snap with Fred’s painting. So, this wasn’t as big of a hardship as he was making it out to be.

               “You’re here for moral support.”

               The scoff Ron released had Harry hiding a smile as he turned around to look at the front of the building.

               “I’ll be the one needing moral support when you two start making out in public.  _Again_.”

               Harry would have pointed out that it had only been  _one_ time, but he caught sight of a familiar mop of blond hair. “Draco!”

               Draco peered around curiously at the sound of his name. Not too many people were on a first name basis with him, on account of him disliking most people. At the sight of Harry, his heart skipped a beat before he shoved his bags into his classmate’s hands.

              “Hold these for me.”  He didn’t bother to see if his demand had been met with an affirmation before he took off towards Harry. In the back of his mind, he could hear his father’s horror at his lack of decorum. But his father could get bent for all he cared.

               It wasn’t until they were inches from each other that Draco wrapped his arms around his boyfriend. “What are you doing here? I thought Lovegood had taken you to the depths of the pyramids in Egypt.”

               Harry shook his head ruefully. “She did, but I came home early. I wanted to surprise you.”

               Before Draco could call Harry a bloody sap, the sound of gagging had him peering over Harry’s shoulder. “I see you brought Ronald. I didn’t realize your surprise meant horror.”

               Ron laughed as he sat up. “Still as much of a prat as always. And here I was thinking you might have mellowed into a decent human being.”

               Draco smirked, enjoying the banter. Once they had gotten past their animosity, Ronald was an interesting conversationalist.

               “That would be too predictable.” He looked away from the redhead and into sparkling green eyes. He wanted to tell Harry how much he missed him, and how much he had thought about him, but that was too much. There was a simpler way of voicing his thoughts.

               “I like you.”

               Harry couldn’t keep the wide grin off his face. Nor could he stop himself from lifting Draco up and spinning him around. There was so much uttered in the simple sentence and Harry understood his boyfriend completely.

               “Oi! You utter git, put me down,” Draco cried out, forcing his legs around Harry’s waist to keep himself from falling. He did  _not_ trust Harry not to drop him.

               “I like you too, Draco. I like you too.”

* * *

 

               “I just don’t get it,” Ron whispered to Ginny as they all watched Harry and Draco open their Christmas gifts.

               “What’s there to get? They’re in love.”

               “Not that.” Ron rolled his eyes and waved that away with his hands. “I’m not  _that_ blind.” He ignored his sister’s snort of disbelief. “I meant, I don’t get why they never say, ‘I love you’.”

               Ginny paused to see if he was serious. “That can’t be right. I’m sure they say it. They’ve been together for years.”

               Ron shook his head so violently that the reindeer antlers George charmed to belch at anyone passing by, flew off his head with a loud burp that had everyone turning to stare at him curiously. Only after they all looked away, and his face was hot to the touch, did he continue his conversation.

               “There isn’t a single instance where I have heard them say it. Not once.”

               That had Ginny frowning for a moment. “Maybe they would rather save things for when they have privacy.” Her tone held a heavy dose of doubt.

               Ron snorted so hard that it actually hurt. “Gin! We are talking about Harry and Draco. Dad caught them shagging in the shed last Christmas.” He snickered at the memory of his father ashen faced and traumatized.

               “Technically,” George’s voice interrupted them as he sat down nearby. “That _is_  in private.”

               “Still,” Ron argued, not willing to let this go. “Didn’t they make out in your store? That wasn’t private.”

               George grinned widely. “Yes, but they did it in front of the window. It caused flocks of people flooding the store. Never sold so much product in a span of few minutes in my life.”

               Ginny poked him in the chest. “That’s because you told them that Harry and Draco had taken your ‘Felicis Fluke’. You made them all think that if they tried your stupid three seconds of Felix Felicis that they too could find love. False advertisement.”

               “Ahh. But that is where you are wrong,” George countered, smirk forming. “I  _implied_ nonverbally that they had taken my product. There was no advertisement and you can’t prove a single thing.” He finished his defence with a very mature flick of his middle finger.

               Ron sighed when Ginny looked like she was going to argue. “Discounting George’s Slytherin antics, that has nothing to do with what I am trying to talk about.”

               “I think they just don’t say it around people,” Ginny decided, clapping Ron on the shoulder firmly. “You are looking too much into this. Let them enjoy their love in whatever way they do it.”

               Perhaps she was right.

  

* * *

    

               “When do we get to leave?” Harry asked for the fifth time. He ignored Draco’s glare. After being kissed awake for years by this man, nothing Draco could do would frighten him. They were at a  _very_ boring lecture where someone in Draco’s field of study was yammering  _on and on_. Professor Binns could be taking lessons from the man, because Harry had already fallen asleep three times.

               “I would tell you to have patience, but that would do nothing. You have absolutely none, despite my years of trying.”

               Harry couldn’t refute the statement, but he tried anyway. “Why fix what isn’t broken?”

               “Whoever said you aren’t broken was seriously lying to you,” Draco teased before grinning at the look Harry gave him.

               “Why am I dating you?” Retorted Harry with a barely concealed grin.

               “My winning personality?”

               Harry snorted loudly. “That sure isn’t it.”

               “My devastatingly good looks?” Draco offered, leaning towards Harry.

               “Your looks don’t determine my interest in you.” He didn’t add how much he  _loved_ the way Draco looked. That would fuel the overly large ego already in place.

               “Because you like me,” Draco whispered, eyes travelling over Harry’s face. He sighed softly at the way Harry visibly melted.

               “That’s it.” The reply was uttered just as quietly. “Because I like you.”

               Harry didn’t care that they were in public, didn’t care that the room was full of a bunch of stuffy witches and wizards. He grabbed Draco’s chin and pressed their lips together.

               Somewhere in the background, he heard a scandalized gasp. But if a gentle kiss is what accounted for scandalized these days, then he worried what they would have thought about the things they do in Draco’s office.

               The sound Draco released had Harry moving forward and sliding into his fiancé’s lap. Perhaps there was a reason to be scandalized after all.

* * *

            

                Harry wasn’t sure why Draco asked to meet him in the aviary section of their sanctuary. They were supposed to be celebrating his husband’s addition of rescued Occamy. The poor creatures were nearly extinct due to poachers. Their shells were made of pure silver and worth half the Malfoy fortune.

               “The Occamy wouldn’t be here,” He muttered to himself as he pulled open the door. Occamy tended to eat other magical creatures and needed to be sectioned off.

               Harry came to a standstill as he noticed several new birds that weren’t there yesterday. After taking his sabbatical with Luna, Harry had decided that he wanted to work with Draco. He didn’t have a knack for Magical Creatures like Draco. After the Triwizard tournament, he had a severe lack of trust for most animals. It was something that Draco was still trying to help him with. When Draco decided to open a sanctuary for all kinds of animals, even muggle animals that were endangered, Harry knew that he wanted to be a part of it.

               Handling the finances and the actual business side of the sanctuary wasn’t something he had ever foreseen himself doing. But it was quiet and gave himself time to think. He enjoyed finding new avenues and even new species they can add to the sanctuary. Most of the time, he had to keep Draco away from getting more animals. His husband wanted to save all the creatures in the world but that just wasn’t possible. Out of the two of them, he had always assumed that Draco would be the voice of reason.

               One of the birds slammed into his arm and nearly knocked Harry off balance.

               “That wasn’t supposed to happen.” Came a sheepish explanation.

               After Harry straightened his glasses and looked around, he gestured to the room, hoping Draco would explain.

               “You see, these are Golden Snidgets.” Draco knew that he would have to be quick in his explanation before Harry would become suspicious.

               “Uh huh.” Harry folded his arms across his chest, smirking internally at the way Draco shifted on his feet. “I don’t remember signing off on any papers regarding a new freight of animals.”

               Draco looked at the Snidgets instead of Harry. “That would be because I did it for you.”

               “Draco.”

               Draco sighed heavily. “But Harry, I did this for you.” When Harry’s eyebrows rose far too high to be real, he knew that he only had a few seconds to explain.

               “Just hear me out,” Draco told him, stepping forward enough that he could pull Harry into his arms. “Do you know the origin of the Golden Snidget?”

               “No,” Harry admitted reluctantly, but he also didn’t  _want_ to know more about them.

               “In the early 1200s, there was a Quidditch game that used these birds as a replacement for a Snitch.” Draco smiled when Harry gasped in horror.

               Harry snapped his head up, watching the golden birds flying around the aviary at speeds that he was having a hard time tracking. He could see where the correlation came from, the birds were wicked fast and would be hard to track.

               “Snidget hunts were popular back then. It was seen as an honour to have killed one.” He ran a soothing hand down Harry’s hand when his husband frowned. “It was outlawed in the late 1500s to actively hunt Golden Snidgets.”

               “Actively?” Harry interrupted, not liking the sound of that at all.

               Draco nodded his head. “It was a loophole to allow others to still hold hunts, they just had to legally call them something else.”

               Harry clenched his fists, not understanding why anyone would hunt the birds. They were teeny tiny little things. He watched one of them land on Draco’s shoulder and he couldn’t help but grin. The bird really wasn’t much bigger than a snitch.

               “There have been many times throughout history where they become close to extinction. For a good century they were doing alright, but last month there was an underground hunt and half the Golden Snidget population was wiped out.”

               Harry’s heart clenched painfully. “Is this all that’s left of them?” It was hard to make out all of the birds, but there weren’t that many.

               “No.” Draco shook his head. “This is just a small portion. Their numbers are in the thousands, but not what they should be.”

               The explanation had Harry nodding his head in understanding. “I get why you wanted them in the sanctuary, but what do they have to do with me?”

               “Alright. I  _may_ have wanted to save them solely because they  _deserve_ it, but then I thought of you.”

               “Me?”

               Draco rested his head on Harry’s shoulder, dislodging the bird on his own. “You haven’t touched a snitch since that night.” He felt Harry tense, but that was to be expected. “I know it makes you think of the one Dumbledore left. But I wanted to be able to give you some semblance of a snitch back. Even if it’s one that you can’t catch, but one you can admire.”

               A slight caw from one of the Snidgets had Harry peering up to see several of the birds playing with a Forest Owlet from India. He closed his eyes to keep any tears at bay. Draco was always doing little things for him, things that touched him in ways he never imagined.

               “I like you.” He choked out, wrapping his arms around Draco so tightly he worried it would be uncomfortable.

               Draco smiled softly into Harry’s neck.

               “I like you too.”

 

* * *

 

               “Oi! Don’t eat that,” Draco called out, half wondering why he ever thought having kids would be a good idea. “Dinner isn’t even done cooking yet.”

               “But Harry said it was okay.” Teddy objected, inhaling his biscuit with a speed that worried Draco. Teddy was picking up eating habits from Ronald.

               Draco spun around in time to see Harry with a biscuit half in his mouth. “Did he now?”

               Harry raised his hands in surrender as he quickly swallowed the rest of his biscuit. “In my defence, I never  _told_ him he could have one.”

               When Teddy frowned heavily, and his mop of wild blue hair fell forward, Draco had to hide a smile as he went back to peeling potatoes.

               “You silently implied that I could have one by your demonstration of eating it. I followed your example.”

               Draco couldn’t help but snort at Harry’s gasp.

               “What are you teaching him? I can’t even win when I say  _nothing_.”

               Harry sighed when Draco’s shoulders shook with laughter. He made his way over to the stove and wrapped his arms around his Draco's waist.

               “You are lucky I like you.”

               Despite the teasing tone, Draco tilted his head till he could see into Harry’s eyes. “Yeah, I am.”

               The sound of Teddy’s groans of disgust filled the room as Draco kissed Harry, both ignoring the chime signifying the dessert was finished.

* * *

 

               “Harry calm down.” Draco chided halfheartedly. The anxious energy Harry was releasing was contagious. He could see Scorpius and Lilith bouncing in their chairs inside the Great Hall.

               “I can’t,” Harry whispered, eyes watching students walk across the platform. “Teddy graduates any minute now. I’m so  _proud._ Head boy and passing at the top of his classes.”

               “I rank in the middle of my classes and I never hear any praise for that!” Scorpius argued, folding his arms across his chest and pouting.

               “Right,” Lilith snorted derisively. “Because that’s something to be proud of.”

               Harry tuned out the sound of his children bickering when Teddy came across the platform, smiling widely. “His father would be proud.” He felt a pang at the thought of Remus and Tonks.

               “Both of his fathers are.” Draco amended. He knew that Harry disliked referring to himself as Teddy’s father, because he didn’t want Remus to be forgotten. But to Draco, there was room for both Remus and Harry to have that title.

               Harry turned to Draco in time to hide his face. “I like you.” He had to force his throat to work as it briefly constricted. Teddy  _was_ one of his children and he loved him fiercely.

               Draco ran his fingers through Harry’s hair, ignoring Scorpius’ rolled eyes and Lilith’s pleased grin. “I like you too, Harry.” He turned his eyes towards their eldest son and watched Teddy make his way towards them.

               Their family was pretty perfect.

 

* * *

 

               Harry squinted at the parchment in his hands. He hated getting older. “Lily sends her love!  _Oh!_ She says she has good news. I wonder what it could be.”

               “I hope it’s about her Potion internship and not that prat she's dating,” Draco growled as he finished mending the wing of an injured Doxy.

               “Jason seemed like a nice young man to me,” Harry argued, resting on the couch in Draco’s office. “He was a perfect gentleman and said all the right things.”

               “Exactly!” Came the frustrated reply. “No one says  _all_ the right things. He was suspicious.”

               Harry rolled his eyes before closing them altogether. He had been feeling more tired than usual lately but that was another price of getting old. “Don’t you remember being that age and in a relationship?”

               “Of course I do!” Draco exclaimed, waving his hands in the air. “Which is  _why_ I am suspicious. We weren’t exactly innocent back then. Remember what we used to get up to in the Weasley shed?” He smirked at the memory of Arthur catching them. The man hadn’t been able to look either of them in the eye for months.

               When Harry didn’t answer, Draco turned to him. He smiled at the passed out picture Harry made. Even after all the years together and despite the way their bodies have aged, he still found Harry to be absolutely beautiful. Silver lined the edges of his temple and wrinkles adorned his face, Draco found him to be enchanting.

               Draco summoned a blanket from his desk drawer and covered Harry. He took a step towards the door before turning back around completely and getting on the couch with him. A nap wouldn’t hurt.

               He settled his head on Harry’s chest comfortably before whispering that he liked Harry. He there would be no response, but it was still nice to voice.

 

* * *

 

               “It’s weird, right?” Scorpius whispered, watching his parents dance in the middle of the living room.

               “Their lack of skill?” Teddy retorted, bouncing his toddler on his knee. “Absolutely. They like to  _think_ they can dance.”

               “I think they are cute,” came Lilith’s answer as she laid her head on Jason’s lap. “They are old as hell and still love each other.”

               “But that’s the thing,” Scorpius continued as if he hadn’t been interrupted. “They never  _say_ they love each other.”

               “That can’t be right.” His siblings said in unison.

               Scorpius nodded his head. “I’m being serious. Can either of you recall a time where they have?”

               Teddy bit his lip as his brows furrowed. “I remember when they got married, I was a child, but they were definitely in love.”

               “But they didn’t say it?” Lily asked curiously, sitting up. “You don’t think they were an arranged marriage, do you? Dad’s side of the family is quite… traditional.”

               “No.” Scorpius shook his head. “Father is the furthest thing from traditional. Remember the bedtime stories he used to tell us? The ones of about the comet falling in love with the beautiful star?”

               “What of it?”

               “Father sometimes calls dad his star, because of his namesake.”

               Teddy grinned as he looked back to his parents, who were still dancing, blissfully unaware of their surroundings. “You think he was telling you about their love?” He couldn’t help but sigh happily. There was something about their love that made him smile.

               “Absolutely.”

               Despite the conversation, Teddy shook his head. “Maybe they don’t say it. Maybe they never have. Who knows? It’s obvious they are in love.”

               Scorpius nodded a little reluctantly. There was no denying that. Perhaps his parents loved in a different way than most.

 

* * *

 

               “You should see a healer.” Teddy’s voice had Draco snapping his head up and watching their son help Harry into a chair.

               “I’m fine.” Harry waved off the concern. He was more concerned with watching his grandchildren play around the fire. If they sat too close, they could be harmed. “Just getting old.”

               Draco narrowed his eyes before sitting down next to his stubborn husband. “What is this about? Is your chest acting up again?”

               “It’s more than that,” Teddy stressed, looking around for his siblings to help. “His grip on my wrists were faint. I think there is something wrong.”

               “Teddy’s right,” Scorpius chimed in with a worried expression. “Last month his muscles gave out and I had to catch him.”

               “Nonsense,” Harry grumbled, not liking that he was being cornered. “I slipped, that’s all.”

               “Harry,” Draco whispered, pulling Harry into his arms, ignoring the way his husband tried to wiggle out of the hold. “Please see a healer. I worry about you.”

               Harry sagged despite himself. He hated to see Draco worried about him. “Alright, but only because I like you.”

               “What are we? Blast-Ended Skrewts?” Lilith called from the other side of the room. “We’ve been telling you to get checked out for months.”

               “That’s actually a perfect description for the lot of you,” Draco called out, tuning out their objections so that he could hold Harry tighter. “I like you too.” He whispered, wondering if Harry really was okay.

* * *

 

              Dragon Pox. The words reverberated in Harry’s mind as his heart stopped in panic.

             “But Dragon Pox is curable!” Draco nearly shouted at the healer as he sat down beside Harry.

             The healer looked at them with pity. It made Draco want to hex her where she stood. He may be getting close to eighty but that didn’t mean he couldn’t win a duel.

             “This is a newer strain, less than 50 years, but there isn’t a cure as of yet. There aren’t any experimental trials, but this isn’t the end. You could still have a good 10-20 years left.”

             Harry’s breathing picked up. “That’s a big gap.” He wasn’t sure how to process this. Dying. He was dying.

             “How could Harry have caught it but not me?” The demand was harsh, but Harry knew that Draco was just worried.

             “Actually,” The healer began hesitantly as she summoned Draco’s chart. “It would seem that you  _both_ have contracted Dragon Pox.”

             Draco was grateful that he was already sitting, or else he would have collapsed. “But I haven’t experienced the same symptoms! I feel fine!”

             “That can happen,” Healer Glendale tried to explain. “It manifests differently at different stages. You will begin to feel the effects.”

              “What about the children?” Harry suddenly asked, worry clawing at his insides. “Or our grandchildren? Great-grandchildren? Do they need to get tested?”

               “It would be wise to send them in, but based on the strain, it has been something that has been inside you both for years. It’s central to several different Magical Creatures. Have you come across many foreign creatures in your lifetime?”

               Draco closed his eyes tightly. His entire life work had been what would kill him in the end. “Thousands. I ran a Magical Sanctuary for decades. Still visit on occasion.”

               “That would do it,” She said a little cheerfully. Harry glared, wishing she had more sympathy. “We have experts working on finding a cure, there’s no guarantee of a future cure, but they are doing everything they can.” There was a slight pause. “Remember, this isn’t the end.”

               “Easy for her to say,” Draco whispered as the door shut when the healer left the room.

               “Draco,” Harry shook his head rapidly. “We are dying.”

               Draco blinked rapidly at the pain in Harry’s voice. He wrapped his arms around his husband. “Love, we are one day closer to death every day we are alive. Ours just has a time limit.”

               “How can you be so calm about this?” Harry’s heart was breaking at the thought of what they were going to tell the children.

               “Shock, I suppose.” There was a humourless chuckle that escaped Draco. “I imagine I will explode later when it all settles in. But for now, I am selfishly grateful that I am not in this alone.” He paused to bite his lip. “Is that awful of me?”

               Harry shook his head, perhaps it was selfish, but he wasn’t sure he could be okay with any of this if it meant Draco left this world without him. “Maybe we can be awful together.” His eyes filled with tears, wondering how they were going to get through this.

               Draco knew that nothing he said was going to make any of this okay. Nothing was going to make their diagnosis bearable. All he could do was provide limited comfort. “Together. We have been together most of our lives. Whatever we face, it will be a unified front.”

               “I like you!” Harry cried out, not able to stop repeating the statement like a broken mantra.

               Draco couldn’t hold his own tears at bay. He tried to say it back, but his throat wasn’t working, and he couldn’t seem to voice it. But that was okay. Because Harry knew the sentiment inside of him. Knew how much they meant to each other.

 

* * *

 

               “It’s getting worse,” Lilith whispered, shaking her head rapidly, trying not to cry. “They both are.”

               Teddy closed his eyes, not willing to let it sink in. He had gone his whole life with Harry and Draco right there beside him. They were there for him when he questioned who he was, they were there for him when he wanted to know more about Tonks and Remus. They were there for him when Grandma Andromeda died. He  _always_ had them in his corner. How was he supposed to go on without them?

               “I don’t think I can do this,” Scorpius whispered, throat constricting painfully. They were supposed to be here for a routine check-up at St. Mungos, but their parents were deteriorating before his eyes. “They clearly don’t have much time left.”

               “Don’t say that!” cried Lily, covering her face with her hands as her shoulders shook. “This isn’t fair! They shouldn’t be leaving us so soon.”

               Scorpius wanted to snap back, but he couldn’t do it. He walked to his sister and pulled her into a hug, tears forming. He held out a hand, hoping Teddy would join.

               Teddy embraced them tightly, wishing that things were different. He had always known that his parents couldn’t be with him forever, but he just didn’t think it would be  _now._

 

* * *

 

               “Harry,” Draco rasped slowly, trying to reach out a hand to feel his husband. They had been placed on neighbouring beds, but Draco had waited until the healer left to push them even closer.

               “I know,” Harry whispered, entwining their fingers. He knew that they didn’t have as long as the healers had predicted. He wasn’t sure how much longer he could cling to this world. A few years? A few months? Days?

               “I never thought I would get this far,” Draco whispered as he blamed the potions for his lapse in judgment.

               Harry turned his head till he could peer at Draco curiously. “With the disease?”

               “No. In life.” There was a pause as Draco looked at their fingers. “I never thought I would survive the war. It was all so chaotic and horrible. I almost gave up all hope, did you know that?”

               Harry did know this, it was something they had talked about at length several times. But it was clear that Draco either was forgetting things or felt the need to voice it.

               “It seemed like Voldemort was going to win. Muggleborns were being caught at all turns, no one was doing well in opposition. The Order was practically in shambles. It wasn’t until you were thrown at my feet in the Manor, that I realized that hope was still alive. In you. You’ve been my hope for so long Harry.”

               Harry closed his eyes tightly, wishing they were in the same bed. He needed to feel Draco in his arms.

               “When the world was righted, and he was long gone, I realized that it didn’t make sense to have hope in you anymore. I needed to have hope in myself.”

               The reminder of the way Draco took control of his life and set out to be his own person had Harry smiling softly.

               “It wasn’t until you shoved your way into my life that I knew that it was okay to share the hope. That I could hope in the both of us. Believe in what we could be together.” Draco stopped to compose himself as his breathing became laboured.

               “But now what am I supposed to hope in? How can that hope transcend into something? It can’t have all been for this. I didn’t hope in life just to die without it.”

               Harry tightened his hold on Draco’s fingers. “Hey. Who said we are leaving this world without hope? You aren’t the only one who lived with hope, Draco.” He smiled when Draco peered at him with those grey eyes that still entranced him.

               “We have been together so long that I have to try hard to remember what no hope felt like. I lived the beginning years of my life with so much darkness that hope was a fantasy. Hope wasn’t real to me until I had you.” He felt his eyes water when Draco let out a sob.

               “Even though we are dying, I know that our hope will still be there. Perhaps in another life, or maybe our children will carry that hope outward. Don’t give up on that. Keep hope alive, in us.”

               Draco’s heart kicked painfully, and he  _knew_ that time was slipping. Earlier, he would have guessed he still had at least another year, but now he knew better. He had been warned about this, warned that when he could no longer breathe to take the potion by his bedside. A small red vial, one that would send him to his final stance. They said it would be as easy as falling asleep.

               Harry watched Draco shakily reach for the red vial and covered his mouth with his free hand. His husband may be approaching the end, but Harry still had time left. But he didn’t want to live without Draco. Not when it was this close to the end.

               A clang reverberated around the room as the now empty potion vial fell to the floor. Draco looked to Harry as his mind started to fade and his eyes drooped. If this was the last moments in his life, he wanted to make it meaningful.

               “I like you, Harry.” As his eyes closed, he could make out Harry’s lips moving but there was no sound.

               “No,” Harry cried out when he was positive Draco hadn’t heard him. “I like you too, Draco. I like you too!”

               No matter how many times he repeated it, he knew it was on deaf ears. He fumbled quickly for his own red vial and downed it without a second thought.

               The last thing he was able to do, was to squeeze Draco’s hand, wishing that there would be a returning touch.

 

* * *

 

               “You utter prat!” The sound of Draco’s angry tone and an accompanied smack to his arm had Harry blinking rapidly. He looked around and only noticed a bright light everywhere.

               “What did I do this time?”

               Draco couldn’t help but snort. At least Harry recognized that he messed up a lot. “You weren’t supposed to follow me yet! You still had months left inside you.”

               Everything came rushing back to Harry in snapshots of their life. Their life, their love, their children. All of it.

               “Did you expect anything less of me?”

               That had Draco shaking his head before he pulled Harry into his arms. “No, you have always been a sap. Of course you would follow after me.”

               Harry breathed deeply, realizing for the first time that he could breathe without his lungs rattling and wheezing.  

               There was a familiar laughter that sounded in the distance and it had Harry straightening up.

               “Do you want to meet my parents?” He paused nervously, unsure what Draco would think. “They’ll like you just as much as I do.”

               Draco snapped his head up and blinked rapidly. “Absolutely.”

               The sound of pattering paws had Harry laughing when he caught sight of a familiar dog. “Snuffles.”

               Draco realized as he trailed after Harry that his husband had been right. Hope was still alive in them. Just in a different way.

              Hope lived on for everyone.  

**Author's Note:**

> Hopefully, this wasn't too painful for you guys. I don't usually do stuff like this. I am a fluffy kind of person. But this is where my mind was going and I decided to do it. 
> 
> I do hope you enjoyed this. 
> 
> -XxTheDarkLordxX


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